If you grew up with Louisa May Alcott’s “Little Women” at home or at school, then PBS Masterpiece’s two-part TV adaptation will likely bring back warm feelings of nostalgia. The first half of the series, which airs Sunday at 8 p.m., introduces the girls and their very different personalities.
Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth spring to life as imperfect sisters, occasionally at war with each other but who always try to keep the peace with their kindhearted mother while their father is away on the frontlines of the Civil War. A new, attractive boy and his tutor have moved in next door, piquing the interest of the older March sisters. All four will go through tremendous personal growth over the course of the hour-long episode.
There have been a handful of unforgettable “Little Women” adaptations over the years, including the 1933 version starring Katharine Hepburn, a 1949 adaptation starring June Allyson and perhaps most recognized by younger viewers, Gillian Armstrong’s version of “Little Women” starring Winona Ryder.
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Those are some very big names to follow for the newest Jo March, our story’s hero played by Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman’s daughter, Maya Hawke. She’s an excitable on-screen prescience, comfortably casual yet wide-eyed to the world around her. Hawke captures Jo’s independent streak quite well. Strong but not haughty, smart but not a pest.
Share this articleShareThe annoying duties belong to one of the younger sisters, Amy (Kathryn Newton), whose bullheaded tactics get her into trouble. Meg (Willa Fitzgerald) is the oldest March sister, sweet and mature for her age. The devastatingly shy Beth (Annes Elwy) is less an awkward nerd than a serious victim of her melancholy and anxiety. Mama Marmee March (Emily Watson) is the soothing anchor who holds down her brood of young women and others. Michael Gambon and Angela Lansbury round out the cast with their wisdom and formidable presences.
There’s a natural ease woven throughout the movie. The setting looks appropriately rustic for mid-1800s. The camera pays a great attention to details, such as when the seasons change from freezing winter to a warm spring, filled with colorful flowers and brighter dresses. Even the terrifying scene when Jo singes Meg’s curls off with a hot iron, the screen splits between the different reactions of each of the sisters. They are one together, but not all the same. When the last rays of sunset spills into the March home with a warm glow, the feeling is almost nostalgic in nature yet seemingly hopeful for the young women’s future.
“Little Women” is perhaps one of the most established feminist works a young student will come across in school. Each of the main female characters in the book are given fully formed inner lives, distinctive personalities and faults. This novel wasn’t meant to be a lesson on the popular morality of the day, but one where women could make mistakes, behave imperfectly and still bring something to the story.
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Supposedly based on Louisa May Alcott herself, Jo has a love of books in a time where few women authors were ever published. Her sisters have more socially acceptable hobbies like Meg’s domesticity, Amy’s fondness for painting and Beth’s obsession with the piano. In her own quiet rebellion, Jo finds a way to express herself and gives book-loving young girls a heroine to look up to.
It’s an odd kind of comfort to find some remainder of your childhood right where you left it. To hear the March family fret about “a divided country” is a reminder that the worst of times shall surely pass.
For those of us who always saw themselves in one of the March sisters, this newest version likely won’t let you down. They’re as wonderful and spirited as when we first read about their adventures all those years ago.
Part 1 of “Little Women” will air on PBS Sunday, May 13 at 8 p.m. Part 2 will air on Sunday, May 20 at 8 p.m.
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